A kilo of “extra quality” black truffles is displayed at 3000 euros per kilo. stock.adobe.com
Truffle growers have never seen such a situation, even during the heat wave of 2003.
Nestled underground, the precious black truffle is becoming increasingly rare. In question ? A drought that limits its development and no solution at the hand of the producers. France is already instate of emergency“, after 31 days without significant rain. “It’s the driest winter since 1959“Said the Minister of Ecological Transition, Christophe Béchu, on Wednesday. However, the planting period extends from November to March and then it takes at least between four and seven years to harvest its first truffles.
“Last year was rather interesting in terms of volumes, this year we only achieve 30% of production“, underlines Alain Ambialet, president of the French Federation of truffle growers. If the harvest period normally extends until the end of March, it “risk [déjà] to end at the end of February“. According to him, this is due to:a very hot last summer, record temperatures for two or three months and a severe lack of water. All of France was affected“.
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The president of the federation – also a producer for ten years – has never seen such a situation, “even during the heat wave of 2003, it is incomparable“. “From now on, we anticipate the phenomena of drought, some producers have water reserves, others have the possibility of connecting to the networks, but, to water, we do not need restrictions on the part of the government.“, he adds.
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“Mega basins” to store water
For Christiane Lambert, President of the National Federation of Farmers’ Unions (FNSEA), “if there are not enough water reserves in France, there can be no agriculture“. An observation shared by Marc Fesneau, Minister of Agriculture, who recommended this Friday the use of “mega basins“: “My position is that we need structures of this type to ensure that water is stored when it does not rain.»
Even if the drought affects all European countries, some still manage to do well. In Spain, the government imposes fewer restrictions and allows truffle growers to pump directly into groundwater. Today, it is the largest European producer of truffles in terms of volume, ahead of Croatia.
A price that varies each week
The truffle, an exceptional product, is thus becoming increasingly rare. Faced with an unabated demand, prices have increased by 50% this year for consumers. La Maison de la Truffe, created in 1932, negotiates prices with its suppliers each week according to supply and demand. Currently, the professional retailer is displaying a price of 3,000 euros per kilo for black truffles “premium quality“.
A supervisor of one of the group’s stores, who wishes to remain anonymous, gives his advice on finding one at the best price: “The sales period is from November 15 to March 31, the more we advance towards the heart of the season and the more expensive it is. Unsurprisingly, there is a peak towards the end of December with the end-of-year celebrations. These are the most expensive two weeks of the season. Then, the price decreases in January and February, before rising again at the end of the season.It is therefore better to start now to hope to acquire black gold without exceeding excessive prices.
SEE ALSO – Drought: what are the “soft restriction measures” mentioned by the Minister for Ecological Transition?